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On a Budget

Hello, everyone!!! I have poured over your posts and I still need help... I am trying to plan a trip for my first wedding anniversary. My husband and I are in our mid 30's. We do not have children. I would like to go to Turks and Caicos the week of 4/27/2014. We will be flying out of Cincinnati, Ohio. I have priced several hotels, and there is obviously a huge difference. The last trip we took was to Curacao, and we absolutely loved it!!! We are not big shoppers at all. We basically lounge by the pool or on the beach. I have seen that we should rent a car, but I really don't want to deal with it. I would like to stay on Grace Bay. The things that are MOST important to me is a nice pool, beautiful beach, good location to walk to different restaurants and hopefully be somewhere that offers room service. We like to walk on the beach, but we will not be snorkeling. And we LOVE to sit on a balcony and look at the ocean. I have seen trips priced from around $3100 (including air) to $6000. I would like to keep the cost of the hotel and airfare as close to $5000 as possible, with the understanding that we will need an additional $2000+ for drinks and to eat. Please help! I understand that the Alexandra isn't luxurious, but it seems fairly priced. I was also looking at the Windsong. Can anyone give me suggestions, please? Thank you!!!

Although you can technically walk from others, at night you really need transportation to get back, as there are some dark sections.

You probably want a car for part of your trip anyway, you have to see Chalk Sound, Sapadilla and Taylor Bays, leeward and Pelican Beaches, Da Conch Shack and Bugaloos. It can be done in 1 day, but you'll love them

Make sure to do a half day excursion with either Caicos Dream Tours or Island Vibes, it will be your favorite day!

PS Fodor's In Focus: Turks and Caicos comes out in December with reviews of everything!

I did look on VRBO, and there were a few at Royal West Indies. I was more set on either the Windsong or the Alexandra, simply because I would really like room service. The cheapest flight right now is through American Airlines, and it is $626. I did check on prices in May, but they didn't seem to drop any. I went on myturksandcaicos.com and was able to take video tours of the properties and what I saw of the one bedroom beachfront in both the Alexandra and Windsong would definitely fit our needs. The Windsong, however, was very much above our budget. I went ahead and booked the one bedroom beachfront at the Alexandra through the hotel website. The king bed, room service, pool and the huge balcony were what sold us. They also aren't charging my credit card, and the cancellation fee is minimal if I do decide to go elsewhere.

Thanks for the info, blamona!!! We will think about renting a car for at least a few days.